The Women’s March on New Jersey kicks off Saturday morning

For the third year in a row, supporters of women's rights come together for a march in solidarity with "The Women's March on New Jersey" set for this Saturday, Jan. 19.

The women's march kicks off at 11 a.m. at the War Memorial in Trenton, lasts about half a mile, then wraps up back at the War Memorial where a speaking program will take place.

Founder Elizabeth Meyer said in 2017 that the focus of the march was about getting women involved in politics. In 2018, the march was about taking their power to the polls. But in 2019, the attention is being turned inward to the sisterhood in New Jersey. The goal is to create an authentic, inclusive safe space to develop an understanding of one another.

"What we really believe, especially in such a divisive climate, that we need to create solidarity within our female identifying community and our allies here in New Jersey. So we are focused more on ourselves this year than we have in years past," said Meyer.

The Women's March on New Jersey is an independent march, said Meyer. It is not connected to the national march set for the same day in Washington, D.C. The New Jersey march does not receive financial help from other organizations. The coalition of 50 activists across the state are coming together to bring this march to fruition, she said.

While it's hard to determine how many women and allies will be attending the march on Saturday, Meyer is hoping for at least 5,000. Last year, the march got 15,000 people.

"The mission this year is to really unite women and create solidarity," said Meyer. They want to focus on uplifting communities of women, especially women whose voices have been silenced in the past.

First lady Tammy Murphy is returning as a guest speaker as well as U.S. Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-N.J. 12th District.